A purpose
by overcookedrice
Summary: Connor's one job was to hunt down and destroy deviants. Now that the android revolution had taken place and there was no longer a need for finding deviants, he wandered. Lost. A short(ish) story.
1. A home

Connor's one job was to hunt down and destroy deviants. Now that the android revolution had taken place and there was no longer a need for finding deviants, he wandered. Lost. And though he had already become deviant and self-aware himself, his core programming kept haunting him to find something to do. Anything at all. It was easy before considering that, while he was assigned to Lieutenant Anderson, he chased down androids and investigated gruesome murders. But now? He was going crazy. Hell, he couldn't even stand still without fidgeting with a coin or constantly fixing his appearance. So wandering about with no home, no job, and no purpose was absolute torture for Connor.

The first thing he tackled is the _no home_ part. He wasn't welcome in Cyberlife anymore considering he broke into their warehouse and freed thousands of androids. And no other android, if they've found a place to stay, would welcome Connor considering his former job was to _kill_ androids. So his only option was to take residence with a human. The only ones he'd known were from the police station so…

Gavin? No, the mere thought sent shivers down Connor's plastic spine. He never took his coffee, did he?

Captain Fowler? Of course not, he didn't know the man. Besides, it wasn't as if he held a soft spot for androids.

But Lieutenant Anderson? This is interesting. Connor's LED flickers to yellow in thought. After admitting that he was in the wrong for blaming androids for his son's death, and after all they've been through and the countless times they've saved each other, he's a solid bet. He even hugged him by the Chicken Feed truck, a memory Connor doesn't want to admit surfaces to his mind many times a day. Now, the problem is, Hank is a grumpy, alcohol-dependent old man, and convincing him to let an android stay in his house? A real challenge. But, Connor was up for it. Staying on a bus bench and being exposed to the bitter December air was roughing him up.

With nothing else to do, Connor walked towards the house, easy since he broke into it once. In his defense, it was out of concern for Lieutenant Anderson. Nobody appears to be home, and normally, Connor would ring the doorbell, knock, or, like before, smash a window and let himself in, but if he's trying to appeal to him, that doesn't seem like the best choice. So, he sat on his front porch, watching the sun set, waiting for Lieutenant Anderson to come home. Really wished he had his coin.

"Holy _shit_ -" Connor's eyes snap open at the sound. He takes in his surroundings, adjusting his eyes to the new nighttime. How long has it been? Had he gone into stasis by accident? But the man in front of him doesn't give much time to think. "Connor? What're you doing in front of my house? Man, get the _fuck_ out."

"Good evening Lieutenant Anderson! I'm Connor, your former partner at the police station." He springs up on his heels and makes an attempt at a smile. It comes out awkward.

"Yeah, yeah, what the fuck are you up to." Connor's eyes scan him, finding traces of alcohol just about everywhere. He didn't know too much about drunkenness, but one thing's for sure, it makes you someone you usually aren't. Meaning, that if the lieutenant was cold, rude, and grumpy sober, would he be different now? Judging by the tone and slurs of his voice, perhaps not, but it was worth a shot. "Uh… Connor?"

"Lieutenant Anderson, to put it bluntly, I have nowhere to go. Staying on a bus station bench leaves me vulnerable to the elements and to other androids who hold a grudge against me, so I've come to you." The lieutenant stares in an odd mixture of confusion and disbelief. "I hoped that considering our past together, you could offer me help."

"You're gonna have to find somewhere else. I'm too drunk for this shit."

"Lieu-!" And Connor got the worst outcome possible. A door slams in his face. His first reaction is to recount what he did wrong. Surely, He'd seen a _seventy percent success rate_ in the corner of his vision, but looking back, it wasn't the greatest of chances. Were they not considered friends? Was this not what friends did? Connor gently hit his head on the wall in frustration for not knowing human norms, but not loud enough for anyone on the other side to hear. So, with his newfound defeat, he curls up his knees to his chest and sits on the porch. At le-

"Ok, _fine_. You can stay. But I'm only doing this out of pity!" The lieutenant tried to defend himself with frustration and coldness, but Connor's ears picked up on the laughter that strained through it. It was clear to the android that the lieutenant thought he was a friend, a thought that made a wide smile break out onto his face, flooding his head with a warm happiness. With the _Software Instability_ errors pushed out of the way, and after regaining composure, he followed the lieutenant into his home. "For fuck's sake, standing out there looking like a kicked puppy." Perhaps such innocent, brown eyes _did_ help Connor off the field.

"I appreciate it, lieutenant! Your sacrifices will not go in vain. I will do everything in my power to make sure I-"

"God, shut up before I change my mind. Take the couch or something." Again, the retort was not mean-sounding at all. "And stop calling me lieutenant."

"Mr. Anderson."

"Nope."

"Offic-"

"Try again."

"Sir."

"I swear to _God_ , Connor. _Think_." And he did. He thought for a hard second.

"... Hank?" The name came out odd on his tongue as if it were a dirty word that shouldn't be said. Connor looked up sheepishly in preparation for being wrong, but instead, the lieutenant was smiling at him.

"Better." And this. _This_ was what got a goofy smile back on the android's face. The notion that someone cares for him and the warmth of friendship that he didn't allow himself to feel while working for Cyberlife. It made him giddy with happiness.


	2. A job

Initially, Connor thought he would go head-first into the job issue by signing up to be part of the police task again, but another problem arose, one so serious that a profession could wait. Lieut- _Hank's_ \- house was an absolute mess. Connor who was not, in any way, shape, or form, a domestic android or had any will to clean, was fighting the urge to tidy up the home. Not needing to go into stasis again, he sat on the couch in disbelief, letting the Saint Bernard named Sumo to sniff him. Sumo walked cautiously around the plastic-smelling man but deemed he wasn't a threat, in fact, the huge dog put his head in Connor's lap to sleep. There were beer bottles and empty whiskey glasses littered all over the place alongside pizza boxes, fast food containers, and various wrappers.

"Your owner needs to clean his house. Perhaps I will do it for him when he goes to work tomorrow as a sign of appreciation. What do you think, Sumo?" Connor spoke quietly, stroking its head and entertaining the thought of what the dog's answer would be. "It would be easy to search up the jobs of domestic androids. And I can help him until the tension between androids and humans lowers in the workforce. Yes, this is ideal. I'll stay with Li-" Connor catches himself. "Hank."

Still, the name sounded foreign on his tongue. After all the afternoons of shouting "Lieutenant Anderson!" and not "Hank!" he describes the feeling as _new_. Something felt odd in his chest, nothing painful or uncomfortable to say, but something intrusive and odd. It made him want to hold the dog closer and close his eyes. So that's what he did. Laying down with his head on the arm rest, Connor pat his chest invitingly, letting the dog sleep on him. Since he lacks the ability to bruise or feel the weight of the dog, he goes into stasis once more with no discomfort.

A camera shutter woke Connor. Light streamed through the blinds, illuminating dust as it fell in and out of the rays. He added _dust_ to his list of things to do. Looking around more, he notices Hank's back turned towards him, and Connor was about to sit up and ask him what he was doing before he remembered that Sumo slept on him. Slobber stained his shirt and the sleeping beast didn't seem to want to move soon, and to make it worse, Connor liked the dog too much to rouse him. Only when Hank's shoulders moved in laughter did Connor speak.

"Good morning … Hank. What are you doing?"

"Hmm? Oh, nothin'. Just uh… you can wake up Sumo, it's fine. Must be something wonderful about you because he never sleeps this much." With Hank's advice, Connor gets the dog off of him. He couldn't help but notice how Hank stuck his thumbs in his belt loop and rocked on his heels out of discomfort or something else. Connor tried to fix his appearance by flattening down the strands of hair that stuck up from sleeping awkwardly or smoothing down his coat. "I'll be going. See you later." The older man was at the door quickly.

"Oh. Goodbye lieutenant."

"Hank."

"Sorry. Goodbye, Hank." The door closed, and Connor waited for a stressful minute, just in case Hank might come back from forgetting something. Once the coast was clear, and the driveway was empty, Connor cleaned quite _feverishly_. It took a split second to download the manual for a domestic android, and Connor was putting it _all_ to use, from doing the dishes to rearranging bottles, even taking care of Sumo and brushing his coat. Being able to do something instead of wander around was an extraordinary relief for Connor. Hours ticked by as he wiped down counters and did his best to hide all the alcohol for Hank's own health.

When he came to the photo of Cole laying face-down on the table, he stared, hesitated, and left it faced down. He wiped the surrounding table.

Laundry was the last thing to do. Connor grimaced looking down at his loose tie and slobber-covered shirt. He took them off and put them in the washing machine. As for the jacket, he kept it aside, for it had special material that wouldn't agree to washing. The shirt he'd use in the meantime was one he found in the far reaches of Hank's closet while rearranging it. It read " _5 Edgy 3 you_ " A reference long outdated and one he couldn't understand even if he wanted to.

Connor slumped down on the couch, wondering when Hank would return. The clock in his upper-right vision read _2:14_ and Connor _groaned_. It had only been three hours? And the lieutenant worked eight-hour shifts? He folded his arms and got frustrated at nothing as he silently wished to be back at the police station. Sure, getting paid, dealing with anti-android people and falling into a schedule was a whole other can of worms, but Connor somehow longed for the chaos. At least then he would do something. He sifted through the news. Watched the television. Played with Sumo. But time was adamant on passing one second at a time.

"Connor? What the hell?" Hank eyed down the android and the cleaned house. Sumo bounced to him but he didn't pay much attention, just gawked at how clean everything was. Not too sure whether to be flattered for his efforts or shifting in awkwardness, Connor said nothing. Just nodded while trying to think of something to say. "What're you doing?"

"Oh, you're upset about the shirt? I will return it shortly, for mine is hanging to dry."

"They're _what now_."

"Hanging to dry…?"

"No, not that you idiot. So, let me get this straight." Hank took a deep breath. "You cleaned my entire house."

"Yes."

"You've done my laundry- _most of my chores._ "

"Correct."

"And Sumo likes you."

"That's up for speculation."

"He was literally sleeping on your chest this morning. Look." Hank quickly put a phone in Connor's face. It was an image of Sumo sleeping on the android's chest, his hair unruly, arms wrapped around the dog in a scene clumsy and peaceful at the same time. Hank groaned again and rubbed his temples with his fingers. Still not sure if it upset him or just in disbelief, Connor remained silent. Despite one of his main features being able to read humans and judge their state, he had a hard time looking through Hank. "Can I ask you why?"

"Simply put, I had nothing else to do. I'm not sure why this upsets you?"

" _Upsets_ me? Connor, no. I'm… amazed, kind of. But you didn't have to, you're not my wife." Connor fathomed the idea for a moment. Just for one fleeting moment, he considered it. "Well… regardless, you won't be here cleaning my shit day after day. I talked with Captain Fowler about letting you back on, and it was an immediate yes. He was actually wondering where you were. You're going back to the station tomorrow."

"Really? That's great news. I look forwards to being back." Connor smiled a little at the older man who turned his head. Smiling was a new concept for the unsocialized android, and more often than not, he feared that his smiles came out awkward and bland. Out of doubt, the smile disappeared.

"I'm starving. Going to get greasy food. You want to come with?" Hank offered, still standing in the doorway. Filled with a sudden excitement, Connor stood up tall and made strides towards the door before even saying yes. Hank understood, just moved his body so that Connor would go ahead of him, a small smile playing on his lips. "You be good, Sumo. I'm going to clog my arteries and die of a heart attack."

"I recognize that you're making a joke, but it _would_ be beneficial to-"

"Yeah, yeah."


	3. A purpose

Over the next few weeks, things felt normal again. Homicides were rolling in as usual, and it excited Connor to see that they now considered the deaths of androids homicides instead of someone breaking a plastic toy. They had their desks across from each other as usual, but Hank framed the image of Sumo sleeping on Connor's chest, and it sat on the desk. Hank's excuse for having it there was "Look at this fucking idiot."

The two bickered over TV shows (crime ones), the android had learned how to cook meals (much to Hank's delight), and they even went to bars together sometimes. Granted, Connor only tagged along because the lieutenant somehow got into fights, and Connor had to be the one to stop things from escalating. Most of the time, things only started when someone made rude remarks about the android, causing Hank to step in. Connor wondered how someone so stupid could be so endearing as he walked home, grocery bags in hand.

Sumo was waiting at the door, the same place he was when Connor left. His tail wagged, and he made excited hops, debating on whether to jump up on Connor. The android got down on his knees and let the dog lick his face, only to giggle at the sensation and push the dog away.

"He really likes you." Connor didn't notice Hank leaning on the wall, looking at the affair. The older man's voice was quiet and… gentle, nothing like the drunken slurs that Connor was used to. Despite his best efforts to tidy himself up and pry the dog off him, he still stood up looking like a mess. Dog spit covered his face and there were wrinkles where Sumo put his paws. In the weirdest way possible, Connor was adorable. He gave a smile that could make flowers grow around him. "He'd rather sleep on the couch than in my bed."

"If you miss the company of your dog, I would be willing to-"

"I know what you're going to say, and I'm going to stop you. But, while we're on the topic." Hank gestures towards a hallway. "There's a guest room over there that you can take. It doesn't seem like you'll be leaving soon, so that can be your room."

"Oh, I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"I didn't expect to stay here this long. Have I been bothering you?"

"Dude you clean my house and cook me dinner. In what way can you be bothering me? 'State-of-the-art' my ass, poor fucker has anxiety." And with that statement, Hank trailed off to the table where a bottle of alcohol probably waited. No matter where Connor tried to hide it, the lieutenant always found it. He's put it in the drying machine, behind furniture, every secretive place. But that's beside the point., every rude remark and insult that Hank's been throwing at the clumsy android came out differently. Different in a way that Connor didn't know how to describe. His voice seemed more caring but still possessed the snarky, sarcastic edge. Just softer for Connor and Connor only.

"Hank?"

"Yeah? Holy shit." Hank bolted from his chair. "What're you doing with the screwdriver?"

"Oh, this? Uh, nothing. Don't mind it." Hank sat down again. "I meant to ask you something."

"Another one of your personal questions?"

"No, not that. Say, do you like my LED?"

"Your what now."

"This." Connor tapped the blue circle on the side of his head. "You see, I've just recently thought about taking it off. Hence the screwdriver. I couldn't care less, but I wanted a human's opinion."

"Everybody already knows you're an android. The famous deviant hunter that went deviant himself. Besides that, don't you want people to stop treating you like garbage? Maybe taking it off will help."

"But Hank, you treat me like garbage."

"We're friends, it doesn't count."

All the instances of dirty looks flash in his head. It's suspicious being an ex-android hunter, but being one who keeps his LED, and for a while, his Cyberlife jacket? More people would trust him this way. The "We're friends" part flew over Connor's head. "Yes. I suppose I should look more human." Connor dragged a chair right next to Hank and set the screwdriver down. "Would you do the honors?"

"Can't you do it yourself? Besides, I'm drunk. Wouldn't want a drunk guy with a screwdriver close to your face."

"I don't find any traces of alcohol in your system."

"Kidding. I didn't drink today." Connor's face lit up so much that Hank had to defend himself. "Don't get ahead of yourself. I'm going back to drinking tomorrow."

"What brought this on? You're usually so stubborn."

"I don't know. I guess... Seeing you try so hard to hide it made me feel bad about drinking. I swear, you can always come home and your face would drop. I found it in the attic, but I left it there." Conner did not know how or why androids cried nor did he know what usually brought it on, yet somehow he was nearly moved to tears by some words. "Come here dipshit. Don't get all emotional on me just yet, I need to get that light thing off."

"Yeah." he sat down next to Hank, felt warm hands hold his jaw for a better angle. He'd always believed androids could not feel anything, but the slight change in temperature was very prominent to him. With his fake skin pulled back and his gray interior revealed, an odd sensation played on his right temple as the screwdriver found a groove beneath the LED.

After a few tugs, the small disk clattered onto the table. It caught Sumo's attention, who had, of course, followed Connor into the kitchen. At first, he didn't know what to think. Just twirled the device between his fingers.

"There. It's off. How do you feel?" Again, Connor observed the genuine tone of his voice. A tear rolled down his cheek. Followed by another. And another, before he was openly crying in front of Hank. Software instability warnings and error signs popped in front of his vision as he took shaky breaths from oxygen inadequacy.

"Connor? Connor what's wrong?" the older man spoke in a low tone and awkwardly pat away the tears with a napkin. It's been a while since he's been around crying people, judging by how he doesn't quite know what to say or do.

"Thank you, lieutenant." Connor put his arms around the man and rested his head on his shoulder before he could stop himself. It felt so... nice to have the warmth. But not the physical warmth. The drowsy feeling he got whenever he was around Hank. The indescribable one. "How could I possibly repay you? I don't understand why you're so damn nice to _me_. Do you see me as a son? Is it because of our past? There has to be a reason."

"You're not in any way my son. And you're insufferable at work. You want to know why I'm nice to you?" Hank was smiling down at the android despite the seriousness of his words. Connor half expected him to make a sassy answer and half expected him to be serious.

"Why?" Connor wiped at his face with a sleeve. He honestly hoped that it would be the sassy answer since the crying was getting embarrassing.

"Because we're friends and I would be completely _fucking_ lost without you. You deserve everything after all you've done for me, and I'm trying to give you that. Can't say I'm doing well."

"Hank, you've already given me everything. A home, a job... I'd be lost without you too. I don't know what I'd do if you weren't here." Connor closed his eyes. Breathed in the scent of laundry mixed with alcohol; the strange mixture was oddly familiar to him.

"You are so emotional. What am I going to do with you?" Hank tousled his hair and went silent for a moment. "I'm about to stoop down to your level though. Everybody needs a purpose in life, and it seems I've become yours. I'm… glad."

"Oh please. You've become… everything." Connor's voice faltered with the surge of emotions and happiness. Everything clicked into place. Hank hugged the goofy, crazy, one-of-a-kind, android in his arms. Sumo even joined in, sticking his head on Connor's knee. At that moment, they both allowed themselves to be weak and pure and nothing but honest. And at that moment, Connor knew he'd always be all right if Hank, his purpose, was beside him.

 **A/N: Hello, and thank you all for taking the time to read a purpose! It's gained more traffic than I ever could have dreamed of (n - n) I'm sorry that this last chapter felt so rushed and not true to the characters. Although I really wanted this last part to be special and really tie things up, I was short on time and the characters sometimes act... out of character. I also felt that there wasn't enough build-up (if that makes sense). Maybe one day I'll go back and re-write this. Maybe one day when my skills are better, I'll re-write** ** _all_** **of it! Who knows? But anyways, thank you so much!**

 **-overcookedrice**


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